Choose the Right Treasure!
Matthew 6:19-21 Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: (20) But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal: (21) For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.
There was a time in my life, when I was considerably younger, that if I came into a little money I would want to rush out to a store and buy something. It didn’t really matter WHAT it was. I had money and I had to spend it. Thankfully, good parents monitor and alter this reckless and even harmful attitude.
For too many, Saving money is a foreign concept…literally! In fact, it is a national problem. The U.S. ranks very low in percentage of savings compared to other countries. In 2013, U.S saved on average of 3% of their income in comparison to several other comparable nations which saved as high as 11%.
As Americans, we have a problem with being short-sighted and living in the moment. We too often don’t consider the ramifications of what an action or behavior today will have on tomorrow and beyond.
Our passage today, Jesus is warning us agains this careless mindset. Jesus’ Warning is straight forward and very simple: Lay NOT up for yourselves treasures upon Earth! He even tells us why. Because in the long run they are temporary in nature. Not only that, in the end they will disappoint you because of their temporary status.
Think about your favorite car you’ve ever owned. It was shiny! It was clean! It smelled new! It made you feel good! What will it be like in 20 short years? It will be disposable at best if not already in a junk yard! It will be virtually worthless.
It’s not just cars either. It is EVERY single thing we own. Our favorite clothes..someday they will have holes. Money? It will be gone, possibly on something non-fun like an emergency….Like your favorite car breaking down! Even people fall in this category. How many of us has had friends that we ‘couldn’t live without’ that now we seldom speak to them because they moved away.
Earthly things are temporary and WILL disappoint us.
As an alternative, Jesus says to: Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven! Again he tells us why. This is a better investment! Because Spiritual Investments are Permanent…even ETERNAL! And they will never disappoint!
Then in verse 21 Jesus really gets to the heart of the matter. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. In some manner, this verse could be the key verse about the Christian mindset. So what is the “Treasure” that Jesus Speaks of? What we value most in life. Our PRIORITIES! What we focus on! What we put our energy into! How we spend our money. How we spend out Time! If Jesus took a snapshot of our lives at this moment in our lives, what would the evidence say about us? Where is our Hearts? Are we chasing after careers? Is that our Focus? Do we dedicate most of our time trying to get followers on Instagram to see what we are wearing and eating? Or does our Hearts should that we are focused on Jesus?
Time may be the biggest indicator of our “Treasure” in this modern age. How much time do we give God in a week? A week is composed of 168 hours. That is not changeable. We spend on average 56 hours sleeping (8 x 7). That leaves 112 waking hours. How many of them do we dedicate to God? Is Four all we spend a week because we go to all four services? How much time do we spend in studying God’s Word on our own? How much so we spend in prayer? Conversely, how much time do we spend on our earthly treasures?
Where is Your Heart?
Reflecting the SON,
Dennis Hogan
Questions, comments or further explanation? Contact me at: dennis.hogan@icloud.com
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